Hey y’all!
Happy Monday!
I took a poll on instagram last week, because a lot of y’all seemed interested in our weekly menu/meal planning over here. And 95% of you said you’d be interested in seeing our weekly menus in blog form with the recipes included! So, here we go!
A little back story… I LOVE meal planning. I don’t know why, and I know a lot of people don’t, but I find it fun and fulfilling, so I figure if I’m doing the work…why not share with you all?
I started meal planning back when Robert and I were newlyweds and we were on a tight budget… I’m the free spirit in our relationship when it comes to finances (if you’ve heard of Dave Ramsey, you probably know what I’m talking about!), and this was an easy way for me to get on board & help with our budget.
Now almost 4.5 years later, I’m still meal planning and loving it! When I meal plan (and we actually follow it) it makes our weeks go so much smoother, and Robert and I both love being able to look at the magnet on our fridge (you can find it here) to know what is on the menu for that evening.
It also helps me to waste less food and to not grab unnecessary takeout when I know we have something easy at home! Less money on food means more money for fun day trips and other things…so that’s part of my motivation!
I’ve decided that as often as I can, I’m going to post our weekly menus on here (with recipes when applicable!), and maybe some people will hop on the meal planning bandwagon with me! ;)
The week that I’m starting this is kind of crazy… we have a friend coming into town, Halloween, and our small group…SO this week is different than most in that I’m only planning a few meals. So what I’m going to do is share last weeks menu with the recipes.
We go through seasons where we’ll eat out or grab take out one or two days of the week, but right now we’re in a season where we’re eating in for 99% of our meals… which means more planning for me…but I love it!
Life is busy with an almost 15 month old, so I’m going to try to make this as simple as possible (both for me and for you!)…so that I can (hopefully!) get these menus up more often than not!
Here’s last week’s menu:
Monday: Pesto Chicken with Salad
For pesto chicken I cube about 1 lb of chicken breast & sauté it in olive oil. While I’m doing that, I boil pasta & drain it. Then I stir the chicken, pasta, and pesto (store bought just for times sake…we really like this one) and ta da! It’s done. Quick, easy, and a favorite around here.
Tuesday: Sloppy Joes with Slaw on the side
This one is another quick and easy recipe for a busy evening. Here’s the recipe I use… it is SO SIMPLE (like you probably already have all 4 ingredients in your pantry right now) and really good! You could put the meat on buns…or not! Sometimes I add cheese, sometimes I don’t!
I made my own slaw dressing with this recipe & a bag of chopped cabbage from the grocery store…the dressing wasn’t my absolute favorite, but it also wasn’t bad. Next time I make slaw I’ll probably try another one!
Wednesday: Taco Soup (Freezer Meal)
You can find our family’s taco soup recipe here! We love this fresh or as a freezer meal…so do whatever works for your family!
Thursday: Taco Soup
(it’s a big batch and Robert and I can get 2 dinners out of it)
Friday: Pizza
Sometimes we get take out ($$$), sometimes we make our own ($$), and sometimes we eat frozen pizza($). But most Friday nights are pizza nights, and what we do just depends on the week/budget/what we’re feeling!
Saturday: Homemade Turkey Apple Meatballs with Marinara Sauce (Freezer)
Here is the recipe I use (although I’ve tweaked it a bit for our family). I initially made these for Jack (because he’s wasn’t the greatest protein eater), but Robert and I love them, too! They’re pretty easy as far as meatballs go, and we pair them with pasta & meatless homemade marinara sauce.
Sunday: Fajitas
So, I did a Kroger Clicklist pickup on Monday and by Sunday, the chicken smelled a little funny. Honestly, it was probably fine to eat, but I’m really picky about raw chicken, haha! So, we ended up eating Chicken Noodle Soup which is one of my freezer meals (SO glad that I did the Freezer Meal Challenge so that I had a back up meal ready to go!)
BUT…we’ve made these fajitas before and they’re awesome! Here’s the recipe I use.
And there you have it! 7 days of easy meals & recipes! I hope y’all find this helpful! Let me know if you have a favorite weekly meal in the comments or if you tried one of these and liked it!
xoxo,
Ashley